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Kim Min-jae secures first trophy in Germany with Bayern Munich's Bundesliga title

Published: 05 May. 2025, 11:32

Bayern Munich's Korean defender Kim Min-jae, left, and St Pauli's German forward Johannes Eggestein vie for the ball during the German first division Bundesliga football match between St Pauli and Bayern Munich in Hamburg on Nov. 9, 2024. [AFP/YONHAP]

Bayern Munich and their Korean defender Kim Min-jae have locked down the Bundesliga title for the 2024-2025 season with time to spare.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen, trying to chase down Bayern Munich, settled for a 2-2 draw against SC Freiburg in their game at Europa-Park Stadion in Freiburg, Germany, on Sunday.

With that result, Bayern Munich locked down their 34th Bundesliga title with two matches remaining this season, as they lead Leverkusen by eight points, 76 to 68.

Bayern finished third last season as their Bundesliga title streak came to a halt at 11. Under new head coach Vincent Kompany, they reached the top of the table after the third match of this season and never relinquished their lead.

Kim, who joined the German giants prior to the 2023-2024 campaign, will get to lift his first trophy in Germany and his second title in a major European league.

Prior to taking his talent to Germany, Kim had helped Napoli win the Italian league title in the 2022-2023 season.

Kim is the first Korean player to win domestic titles in two of the "Big Five" leagues in Europe: England, Germany, Spain, Italy and France.

Kim had an up-and-down first season with Bayern and was once criticized by then-head coach Thomas Tuchel for his overly aggressive defending that left him vulnerable to mistakes.

Under Kompany, himself a former center back, Kim has thrived playing his usual style this season. Bayern have conceded the fewest goals in the Bundesliga with 32 in 32 matches.

Yonhap